SOC 1113 Lecture Notes - Lecture 27: Commodity Fetishism, Mass Production, Planned Obsolescence
Document Summary
Digital divide: the gap between those who have the knowledge and resources needed to use digital information technology, especially computers and the internet, and those who do not. H(cid:455)per realit(cid:455): the co(cid:374)ditio(cid:374) i(cid:374) (cid:449)hich (cid:373)edia depictio(cid:374)s of the (cid:449)orld replace the e(cid:454)perie(cid:374)ce of the (cid:862)real (cid:449)orld(cid:863) Consumer culture: consumption, structured by economic institutions, political regulations, and social norms of the production and sale of consumer goods, promoted though advertising and the media. The rise of consumer culture: key developments: Industrialization: production of an unprecedented quantity of goods: mass production made many items affordable to a larger number of people. Immense capital investments needed for mass manufacturing: larger, more centralized business firms: competition to profuce and sell goods more cheaply came to dominate. Planned obsolescence: the intentional design and manufacture of consumer goods so to ensure the loss of utility in a relatively short period of time: rise of advertising as a way to promote more consumption.
